BC’s Salmon Boom Shows Wild and Farmed Fish Can Thrive Together

Science and history prove wild and farmed salmon can thrive side by side, yet discredited activists and their media amplifiers keep misleading Canadians about ocean aquaculture in British Columbia.

By Fabian Dawson
SeaWestNews

As British Columbia celebrates one of its strongest wild salmon runs in years, activist spin doctors are twisting the story to fit their anti-fish farming agenda, as shown by analysis of both historical data and new scientific studies.

The data distortion by these activist groups is being aided by mainstream media that refuses to fact check the activists’ falsehoods while ignoring multiple new scientific findings that prove wild and farmed salmon can thrive together on BC’s coast.

Leading the pack in this renewed campaign of deception is self-declared independent biologist Alexandra Morton and her ally Don Svanvik. Their latest unsubstantiated claim, parroted by the Times Colonist and republished in theVancouver Sun, is that this year’s strong sockeye returns in the Johnstone Strait are the result of salmon farm closures.

The facts make a mockery of their claim. The largest Fraser River sockeye return in living memory came in 2010, when 28.2 million fish made it back while salmon farms were operating at peak production of roughly 90,000 tonnes a year. The Discovery Islands salmon farms they now blame were only removed in 2022, making it biologically impossible for their absence to explain this year’s returns.

Data from the Pacific Salmon Foundation, which is opposed to ocean salmon farms, underscores this reality. Their historical records show that record highs and lows in salmon runs have occurred both before salmon farming began and during its peak years. These fluctuations are driven by a complex mix of ocean conditions, climate cycles, and habitat health, not simply the presence or absence of salmon farms, it shows.

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) recently told SeaWestNewsthat it does not have data to show that wild populations of salmon have rebounded after the closure of marine-based salmon farms.

Adding to the DFO assertion was Dr. Gary Marty, a veteran fish pathologist who, for the past two decades, worked with the Animal Health Centre of B.C.’s Ministry of Agriculture.

“Wild salmon populations went up and down before salmon farming began, they went up and down in the presence of salmon farms, and I am confident that wild salmon populations will continue to go up and down if salmon farms are removed,” he said

Morton’s credibility has also been challenged before. In 2023, she claimed a surge in pink salmon returns was due to the removal of salmon farms. CTV News, which aired the claim, later pulled the clip after confirming it was false. Even when confronted with video evidence of her own words, Morton denied making the statement, which is a familiar pattern by the activist groups — make an unverified claim, get the headlines, and leave the truth struggling to catch up.

While the activists recycle their debunked talking points, two new studies have added weight to an already overwhelming body of evidence showing that salmon farms in BC pose minimal risk to wild salmon populations.

A study published in Aquaculture Research examined Tenacibaculosis or “mouthrot” in farmed Atlantic salmon and found it does not transfer to Chinook salmon, even in close cohabitation under high pathogen exposure. This directly undercuts the activist claim that diseases from farms inevitably spread to and decimate wild populations.

Another study, published in Scientific Data by Nature, presents BC’s most comprehensive sea lice dataset to date. The study spans more than two decades, nearly 100 farm sites, and over 365,000 wild fish. It shows that sea lice levels naturally fluctuate between years and regions and warns against cherry-picking short-term or localized data, which is a tactic activists have relied on for years.

These are not isolated findings:

• A Journal of Fish Diseases paper found no consistent drop in sea lice on wild salmon after the Discovery Islands farms were removed in 2022. “Sea lice levels on wild salmon in 2024 were among the highest recorded during the last eight-year period in the Discovery Islands, despite the closure of salmon farms,” the study reports.
• A forthcoming Diseases of Aquatic Organismsstudy reports that sea lice levels on wild chum and pink salmon in the Broughton Archipelago did not change after all farms were removed.
• A 20-year review in Aquaculture, Fish, and Fisheries  concluded that BC salmon farms have minimal, if any, long-term impact on wild salmon populations.

All these conclusions align with findings from the Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat (CSAS), which, in 10 peer-reviewed government studies, determined that ocean-based salmon farms in B.C. have only a minimal impact on wild fish.

“These studies add to a growing and increasingly rigorous body of scientific evidence concluding that salmon farms in BC do not harm wild salmon populations,” said Brian Kingzett, Executive Director of the BC Salmon Farmers Association.

Despite this, Ottawa is pressing ahead with a proposed 2029 ban on ocean-based farms in BC – a political legacy from the Trudeau era, driven by activist-influenced ministers rather than evidence.

Kingzett warns the consequences will be devastating as the current proposed ban on marine net-pens in BC by 2029 risks $9 billion in taxpayer costs and significant economic losses to Canada. 

“With the 2029 marine net-pen ban on BC salmon farms approaching, we respectfully urge the federal government to reconsider this decision,” said Kingzett.

“This policy, initiated under the previous Trudeau administration, is not supported by science and will significantly impact coastal communities and Canadian food security.”

BC’s salmon farmers and their First Nation partners are asking Ottawa to reverse the politically driven 2029 ban and replace it with a renewed, responsible, Indigenous-led plan. Under such a framework, the sector could generate $2.5 billion in annual economic output and 9,000 jobs by 2030, growing to $4.2 billion and more than 16,000 jobs by 2040.

(Main image courtesy of DFO shows the Adam’s River Sockeye salmon run)